Saffron of Taliouine and new extension areas in Morocco: farmers surveys and physicochemical analysis

Saffron, the most expensive spice in the world, is a local product of socio-economic importance for developing many rural areas of Morocco, of which Taliouine is the main production area. The views on factors affecting the quality and yield of farmers practicing saffron cultivation are of great importance, and there is currently no research on this topic in the literature. This work aims to evaluate the quality of saffron samples collected at Taliouine (4 samples) and the main extension areas (4 samples) and to survey producers on the characteristics of quality and the main factors involved. The physicochemical analyses were carried out according to the technical specifications of the ISO/TS 3632-2 standard, making it possible to classify the samples according to the Moroccan standard: NM 08.1.037/2007, in categories I or II. Analysis of variance revealed the presence of significant differences (p ≤ 0.05) between \({\text{E}}_{440\text{ nm }}^{1{\%}}\) ${\text{E}}_{440\text{nm}}^{1\%}$ (specific crocin extinction) ranging from 313.77 to 351.36 of the four samples from the Taliouine area and the \({\text{E}}_{440\text{ nm }}^{1{\%}}\) ${\text{E}}_{440\text{nm}}^{1\%}$ varying from 204.04 to 492.87 of the four samples from the other regions, between the \({\text{E}}_{257\text{ nm}}^{1{\%}}\) ${\text{E}}_{257\text{nm}}^{1\%}$ (specific picrocrocin extinction) of the four samples of the Taliouine zone changing from 138.06 to 169.39 and the \({\text{E}}_{257\text{ nm}}^{1{\%}}\) ${\text{E}}_{257\text{nm}}^{1\%}$ ranging from 134.90 to 219.18 of the four samples from the other zones and finally between the \({\text{E}}_{330\text{ nm}}^{1{\%}}\) ${\text{E}}_{330\text{nm}}^{1\%}$ (specific safranal extinction) varying from 65.93 to 101.63 of the four samples from the Taliouine zone and the \({\text{E}}_{330\text{ nm}}^{1{\%}}\) ${\text{E}}_{330\text{nm}}^{1\%}$ of the four samples of the other zones ranging from 89.98 to 119.04. It should be noted that the sample from abroad is fraudulent and non-compliant for almost all the chemical characteristics. Cross-analysis of producer survey data and chemical analysis showed the presence of correlations between stigma length and altitude (r = 0.763*), between crocin content and altitude (r = 0.856*), and between safranal content and humidity (r = 0.722**). According to the producers, the yield remains influenced by the size of the bulbs and the leading cultural practices.